To DST or not to DST: The history behind the time change

Prepare your clocks (and your eyelids) for the time change incoming this weekend. Daylight saving time will shift clocks forward one hour-- that's happening early Sunday morning. Don't forget it to do it before bed Saturday evening.

All states except Arizona and Hawaii will participate. (Lucky ducks...)

Perhaps you're wondering where this daylight-hoarding tradition came from. It was an idea proposed by an London-born man, living in New Zealand in 1895. His name: George Vernon Hudson. He was an entomologist, or insect scientist.

His idea was to change clocks ahead two hours in the spring and summer, so that people could spend longer amounts of time outdoors. Some speculate that he wanted this change so that he could study his... bugs.

What started as an idea by one person quickly spread within a few years. Parts of Canada were the first to employ the change in 1908. DST was further popularized in Germany and Austria in 1916.

On March 31st, 1918, DST began in the United States.

While several other countries adopted the time change over the years, many have dropped the practice, and some never even picked it up in the first place.

Many experts say that there are pros and cons. Longer evenings keep people out longer which can lead to an economic boost for businesses. Some say it can improve safety because more daylight will reduce the amount of pedestrian-traffic incidents.

However, many boast the cons. Experts say health issues can result due to the break in sleeping patterns. It's thought that it can increase automobile accidents and potentially even raise risk for a heart attack. Some say extra daylight leads to more energy efficiency, but many recent studies disprove that.

So what do you think? Should DST be a "thing"? You can vote in our twitter poll at the top of the page.

-Luke